Fresh starts
by
Paula C. Squires
Virginia
Business
September 2004
September is a month for fresh starts. As children head
back to school and college, people establish new schedules.
And as we leave summer behind, the heat gives way to
the cool, crisp air of autumn. A Virginia company that’s
off to a fresh start is the subject of this month’s
cover story. Genworth Financial
Inc. — formerly GE Financial Assurance Holdings
— was spun off from its parent this past spring
in one of the biggest initial public offerings this
year.
Now that the apron strings have been cut, what’s
in store for Genworth? How will the new company thrive
apart from one of the best-known names on the globe?
Those were some of the questions Virginia Business
posed to Michael D. Fraizer, Genworth’s CEO, president
and chairman during an interview at Genworth’s
headquarters in Henrico County. The story, written by
frequent contributor Jack Milligan of Charlottesville,
lays out how the insurance giant plans to succeed on
its own. High on its agenda is trimming $150 million
in overhead over the next two years. Yet these and other
changes, says Fraizer, shouldn’t affect the company’s
2,400-member work force in Virginia.
New in the September issue is our first regional
report on the nation’s capital. Billions in
new development money is flowing in Washington, but
city leaders still see room for improvement. The package
includes a sidebar on an ambitious plan to redevelop
land along the Anacostia waterfront, which borders some
of the city’s poorest neighborhoods. It’s
the brainchild of Washington Mayor Anthony
A. Williams, who is the subject of one of our publisher’s
profiles.
With the growing number of uninsured people in this
country, Lt. Gov. Tim Kaine traveled the state this
summer to talk with small business owners since a large
percentage of their workers don’t have health
care insurance. Expect to hear more on this issue
since Kaine is the expected Democratic nominee for governor
in 2005.
September is the month for our quarterly sections. In
technology Contributing Editor Bob Burke takes a look
at how Manassas-based Aurora Flight
Sciences has gotten itself a piece of the action
in the hot market for unmanned air vehicles. By spreading
its wings, the company is now doing business with the
big players in defense contracting.
Over the past year, Virginia Business has spread
its wings as well, adding new quarterly sections and
a CEO outlook project. One of our cover
stories recently won a third-place bronze award
for best feature in a magazine in a national contest
sponsored by the Association of Area Business Publications.
The judges said this about our November 2003 report
on the state’s growing wine industry: “The
economic, statistical, geographic, competitive and political
elements affecting the Virginia wine industry are integrated
through smooth transitions in the writing. This translates
into the type of informative analysis appreciated by
readers of business news.”
So, there you have it: we strive to be informative,
analytical and a must read for people who want to know
what’s going on in Virginia business.
Paula
C. Squires
Managing Editor
psquires@va-business.com
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